This was my only chance to see Phish in my hometown. "Why the hell are they coming here?" everyone asked. To drop one of the best shows of the year!
I went to Deer Creek earlier in the year and had a great time. The shows didn't measure up musically to my first show in Louisville Gardens, but they were good enough to keep me coming back. Rupp Arena gave me my second magical night to hang on the rafters.
Being a hometown show, I had the ticket situation figured out. A buddy at one of the local Ticketmaster sites got all of us 4th row on the floor. After seeing so many UK basketball games from the nosebleeds, this was a treat.
Around 13,000 tickets were sold for a 24,000 capacity venue. For many bands, this would be a recipe for a lackluster show. I think the out of the way feel and the HUGE energy from the crowd set the band on fire.
The first set's energy and song selection were huge (I got my second Tela of the year in 3 shows), but the real gem was the second set. The Bathtub Gin was insane. I kept asking tour rats if this was normal. They assured me that jams like this were very rare. Page was given ample time to open up and lead the band. Trey physically and musically got out of the way. He grinned from ear to ear throughout the entire jam, even fist pumping a few times. Bike kept the unique vibe going and this still stands as my favorite Fishman solo number. The crowd tried to sing the lyrics for him, but we seemed only to make it harder for him. The strong YEM and Frankenstein finished the night off with a bang. The crowd cheered loudly as we exited the arena, a first for me. "That's how you know you saw something special," a wook told me. I already knew.

After opening with a high-energy “Chalk Dust”, the band quickly went into an early “Weigh”. Trey actually bust out his wah pedal for a guitar segment in the song, something that’s certainly not typical. The first set was held together by an impressive “Stash”, however, that’s par of the course for ’96. Entering the jam, Trey found a delicate but loud pattern. This whole show featured a louder Trey, he is real into this show. In this “Stash”, Trey was clean and crisp with darting notes. He built tension, dominating the jam. Eventually, he released before exiting the song–something he needs to do before he ends “Stashes” in this era of Phish.

“Guyute” was particularly spectacular; the ending guitar segment was crisper that I have ever remembered hearing it. Trey’s playing was soaring and stabs at your soul upon relistening. Out of the end of “Guyute” came “Free”, featuring Trey on his drum kit and a more ambient jam– par for the year. ”Free” sliped into a gorgeous “Tela” before closing with a screaming (literally and figuratively) “Character Zero”. There is a perfect mix of effects and straight-forward rocking from Trey in this “Zero”. This version marks the first time it was played with the ending vocal jam.

After an unexpected “Suzy” opener to the second set, Phish started up “Gin” without missing a note. This “Gin” was featured as a bonus track to the official release of their 12/06/1996 show. This is one of the year’s defining jams, among many standouts. The jam started normally, Trey’s casual noodling turned fierce when he discovers direction. He noodled with accuracy, not aimlessness–something many newer fans see no difference between. Trey starts picking the jam up, and it enters into a segment that is a dead-on “Runaway Jim” jam, only with more WAH. Page reprises the “Gin” theme behind Trey’s lead before they enter the second part of the jam. Trey moves over to his drum kit and Page takes the lead–we are now entering type II territory. Page’s solo becomes heavy and more prominent. Mike lays down an understated and throbbing back bone, slightly morphing it as it moves into an upbeat strut.

Trey picks his guitar back up and solos from low to high over the beat that Fish carried over from when Trey was on the kit. Red starts soaring with a pattern clearly in mind. The jam becomes heavy handed for a bit before Trey busts back out of it and starts soaring again. When Fish realizes that it’s on, he rolls out of the beat he was so stubbornly holding on to. However, Trey and Page quickly fade back, with Fish following suit. Trey starts making spooky and spacey loops with Fish only on his ride. Out of nowhere, a new jam spontaneously combusts; led by a distorted guitar, this jam lasts only a couple minutes before intensely pulsating and Fish leading.. Fish speeds up faster on the ride and joins Page in perfectly segueing into “HYHU”. They played “Bike”, per request, with Fish stumbling through it.

The “HYHU > Bike > HYHU” sandwich was merely a breather before the next monster jam of the night. The following “YEM” showcased the band in a truly and permanently transformative month for their music.

In one of the most heavy-handed examples of Trey starting the ’97 era of ‘cow funk’, Trey relentlessly used his wah and his new style of jamming immediately after “BOY!” on this particular night. Trey goes into a thick funk during and after the “Wash Uffuzi” segment; I love playing this song for people that are not familiar how funky late ’96 really was. Mike quickly caught on to what Trey was doing and started using a new bass effect to highlight the improv’s smooth thickness. The effect he was using is what would become the ever-popular ‘underwater’ sound that was so prevalent after he switched from his Languedoc bass to his Modulus Q5.

Fish sped up the tempo of his hi-hat while page led. Trey started alternating between funk chords and punctuated notes. The band started riding what Trey was doing, stopping periodically for Mike’s funky interjections (what would become the start/stops and funky break downs of 1997). Page changes pace completely, hops on his synth, and starts mimicking the notes Mike is playing. It’s a sound I have never heard Page play outside of this one song in this one show. Page sounded like he’s fresh off the P-Funk Mothership.

Eventually, they all snap into the next section with a drum roll cuing all to follow. Trey sinks back into the funk for a while before sliding his finger down the guitar’s neck to get low, setting up a lick taken straight out of the “YEM” NYE ’95 version. Most fans will know what I’m talking about; it’s the epic, peak-building lick that set MSG ’95′s ”YEM” through the roof. The jam eventually sinks back down and dissolves into a melodic, rather than rhythmic, bass & drums section.

Took my girlfriend at the time to her first show. Took my brother to his 2nd and his girlfriend was her 1st. They all loved the show along with me. I took an 1/8th of shrooms so don't remember much other then the fact that the girl I took to the show hated Phish prior and loved them after. Thanks boys.

Who would ever think that a Thursday night show in Kentucky could be so hot. This show is one of the best from this tour. The highlight is Bathtub Gin. Page drinks this Gin down. The Chairman stands out in this version more than usual and it is a pleasure to hear. I had to listen to Gin 4 times because I could not comprehend its immensity. Take a listen. I just wish Phish was introduced to me earlier than 2000.

This is a very solid show, from start to finish. First set is fun and flows pretty nicely in my opinion. CDT, Weigh>Rift>Guelah is an awesome star to a show and the Stash that follows rips. A chill out in Waste and one of my personal faves Guyute following. Another great '95 Free jam and an always welcome first set Tela keep the set rolling with a fiery Zero jam to close this set out. Solid set to lead into....

Suzy set 2 opener, liked this and was unexpected as I didn't look at the setlist before listening to the show. GIN. Man oh man is this a jam, goes through so much, rigbht up there with all the other epic Gin's in my opinion. -> into HYHU is lot's of fun and gets the cheery vibe going again after a pretty weird finish to that Gin jam (Weird in a great way of course). Nice rarity in Bike and an INSANE MUST HEAR YEM!! This YEM rages for nearly a half hour and caps off this crazy set in perfect fashion. Frankenstein encore is an awesome choice and must have has the energy in that place through the roof after showtime. 4/5 is my vote!

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